Painting tips and tricks

To help you get through your paint job as quickly as possible, try these simple tips and tricks. They’ll also make it easier and help you get a better finish on your next painting project.

Go for quality equipment

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The biggest tip you can give a painter is to buy the best quality brushes and rollers you can afford. Good quality brushes leave less brush marks and give you better coverage. Cheap equipment is more likely to drop bristles and fibres, so you have to spend time picking them out and going over the job again. They’ll also last a lot longer, saving you money in the long run. Properly cared for, quality painting equipment will last for years.

Tape up

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For clean, straight lines between walls and trim and to prevent paint getting on the glass of a window, masking tape is your best friend. Use specialised painter’s tape because it’s not quite as sticky as regular masking tape so is easier to pull off. When painting near masking tape, practice trying to get a straight line with the brush alone. Soon enough you’ll be good enough that you don’t have to use tape at all, saving more time.

Wrap it up

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If you’re taking a break or switching to a different task, you don’t have to spend time washing out the brush or roller, just wrap it up in cling wrap. Load it up with paint first and make sure the air can’t get in, which will dry out the paint.

Sand between coats

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To get a super smooth finish on your doors, windows and timber trim, give each coat a light sand before applying the next coat. The undercoat raises the grain on raw timber and sanding will knock this off and flatten out any brush strokes. If you’re using gloss paint, sanding after the first finishing coat will knock off some of the shine and help the final coat stick.

A little paint is better than a lot

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The more paint you can get onto a brush or roller, the quicker the job get’s done right? Not so. Overloading a brush or roller will mean more drips and runs in the paint, which takes longer to try and even out. It also makes doing the job a lot messier as paint flies off the brush or roller while you work. Clean up also takes longer as paint gets right up into the top of the brush where it’s harder to remove.